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Tuesday, March 14, 2006

Wednesday Watch

Late-Night HeadlinesBloomberg:- China’s yuan had the biggest gain since a decade-old peg to the dollar ended in July, after Premier Wen Jiabao called for the market to play a greater role in setting exchange rates.- China, the world’s largest steelmaker, won’t accept a rise in iron ore prices in talks under way between suppliers such as BHP Billiton and Chinese steel mills and will take action to protect its interests.

Financial Times:- The European Union’s economic growth strategy for jobs and growth, which was revamped last year and dubbed the “Lisbon 2 agenda,” is poised to fail unless it is reformed, citing a report by Bruegel, a Brussels-based think tank on international economics.

Commerical Times:- Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing’s second-quarter orders may rise 10% compared with the previous three-month period. The company is the world’s largest made-to-order chip supplier.

Economic Releases8:30 am EST- The Import Price Index for February is estimated to fall .6% versus a 1.3% rise in January.- Empire Manufacturing for March is estimated to fall to 18.9 versus a reading of 20.3 in February.

10:00 am EST- Bloomberg consensus estimates call for a weekly crude build of 2,500,000 barrels. Gasoline inventories are estimated to fall 1,200,000 barrels, and distillate supplies are expected to decrease by 1,800,000 barrels. Refinery utilization is expected to rise .18%. I expect crude prices to weaken on this report.

1:00 pm EST- The NAHB Housing Market Index for March is estimated to fall to 56 versus a reading of 57 in February.

2:00 pm EST- The Fed’s Beige Book

BOTTOM LINE: Asian indices are higher, boosted by technology shares in the region. I expect US equities to open modestly higher and to build on gains into the afternoon. The Portfolio is 100% net long heading into the day.

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